1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to cargo handling devices and more particularly to a device for securing cargo in place during transportation in a vehicle such as an aircraft.
2. Description of the Related Art.
In the loading and transportation of cargo on a vehicle such as an aircraft, devices have been developed in the prior art which are removably installed on the floor of the vehicle and are used for restraining the movement of such cargo during transportation. To enable loading of the vehicle, such devices are adapted to be lowered to a retracted position so that the cargo can pass thereover to their loaded positions for transportation. To facilitate loading, such devices must be adaptable to be rapidly retracted for loading and subsequently raised to their operative position to retain the cargo in position. Devices have been developed in the prior art which provide the aforesaid functions which are particularly adapted for handling palletized loads. Such a device is described in U.S. Pat. No. 3,306,234 issued Feb. 28, 1967 to Hansen et al. The device of this patent is removably installed on the floor of the vehicle and has a dog thereon for engaging the bottom of a pallet and a side wall to restrain the movement of the loaded pallet. The device of this patent can also be lowered to a retracted position to permit the passage of cargo thereover during loading. In this prior art device, however, the device must be manually pushed to its retracted position increasing the time for such operation. Further, the dog employed for engaging the pallet is not pivotally supported so that it cannot permit passage of cargo if need be.